I leave the comments to you

An update

So, the much awaited news is here. I am getting married. Yes, you heard it right. I will be married on May 14th of this year. Humm, am I going to miss my bachelorhood? ;)

Courage

Came across this.
"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear." — Ambrose Redmoon

Sign of greediness or contention?

I have been promoted at work. I have just been told that I am doing a good job. I have been given a considerable hike, just months after a hike that was even bigger than this one. And just like that, I have got two promotions and 5 hikes in the last 3 years.

Alright, that's for the news part. You want to know what my problem is? The problem is that I am not happy. Not that I am unhappy about this. Let me make it clear. I mean, my reaction to this promotion has been an indifferent one. It's been the same story on almost every previous occasions. Very strange, indeed. And this is compounded by the way those that are close to me reacted to this. True, there were few handshakes and lets-go-for-treat calls. But sparing one (or may be two) excited squeaks, the reaction amongst my close-ones has been conservative. Not surprising really, considering the fact that the one who has every reason to be excited about isn't.

My father worked for the Government in the era, where hikes were hard to come by and promotions asked a lot out of you, including years of toiling. However, there wasn't a single hike or promotion without a celebration with the family. The sweets tasted tastier than ever. The meagre extra money that was promised every month brought so much joy to the family; Had so much value in it. And they were better days to live in.

So, what's wrong with me or the world now?. (I am part of this world and I believe that this world has to be partially at blame too)
It's true that since the last promotion, there hasn't been significant improvement in me in terms of skills or knowledge. But it's also true that those who are already there, where I have just reached aren't any better than me. (And like always, there are exceptions) And so, technically, comparing myself with others, I deserve this promotion. But what really is a promotion? Isn't it a reward for your improvement? isn't a way of telling a person, "Well, we are impressed". How good is a promotion that is drawn against time on the 'X' axis?

So tell me, why am I not happy? Or should I rephrase the question - What makes me happy?

"I am not perfect. But I know what perfection is"

Behind one another

My fellow Indians continue to amuse me. By every small thing they do. By their never ending enthusiam to compete; to fight; To fight for their right. To fight for that 10C seat that has been reserved for them in the Chennai - Bangalore flight.

People were up and at the gate even before the gate was open for boarding. Some, as though all they needed was a spark to lead, joined the line. And before long, the line was menacingly long. Soon a sense of hurry spread amongst the remaining. Who wants to be left out, eh? In a jiffy, all that was left in seats was I with a few despirited folks. Talk about pressure and this is it. The longer the line, the pressure piles up.

Just seeing so many people before one makes them forget the fact that they actually can think; That they do not have to worry about their seat; That there are people to take care of their baggages.

Reason? Beats me. But I wonder if those privileged men were surprised to see me landing in Bangalore at the same time. Well, I agree this has given me a topic to write about. However, the sight of people in line makes me sick. I see them every day everywhere. From morning till I return back home. The mini line before boarding my daily cab to office, the line to buy lunch coupon, at the food counter, at the water pot. Geez, where do we get so many people from!

Here is an interesting and funny way to look at this. This is from a column that the great writer Late. R.K. Narayanan wrote.

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The future historian will in all probability say, 'There are ample signs that people everywhere stood behind one another for hours and hours and the file stretched away for miles. Why they did it we will never understand, particularly as there seemed to have been plenty of space all around where they could have spread out. They seemed to have learnt that style from ants. The one behind took exactly the same number of steps as the one ahead, and if he stopped the other stopped. Why they did it we can never understand as we have no means of judging the inner stresses of those times. All that we are able to gather is that if a man's longevity was twenty-seven years, he spent a total of twenty years standing in various queues, at bus-stands, railway stations, ration depots, cloth-shops, cinema houses and every kind of public place. Considering the time spent this way it is surprising how they managed to find the time to carry on their normal domestic or economic activities.'

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